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Means testing won’t reduce Medicare costs enough for Republicans who want a big deal on entitlements and the idea still outrages some liberal Democrats in the House and Senate who fear that it’s a foot in the door to much deeper cuts to the senior-citizen health care program.

And even though Democrats are open to this one cost cutting move, they are saying no to increasing the eligibility age on Medicare; no to touching Social Security; and no to cutting into Medicaid programs that cover the poor and disabled. Many of these concerns were voiced directly by liberals to White House economic adviser Gene Sperling in a closed-door Senate Democratic lunch on Thursday.

Yet as an olive branch to Republicans, a number of Senate Democrats are ready to drop their long-standing opposition to Medicare means testing if it means the GOP will raise taxes on the top 2 percent of wage earners and if it’s part of a large, deficit reduction plan.

But there is an overwhelming opposition in the Senate and House Democratic caucuses to going any further, showing just how little room President Barack Obama has to maneuver as he tries to reach a deal with House Speaker John Boehner on the fiscal cliff.

“I think people would get pretty excited,” said Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) when asked how Hill Democrats would respond to an Obama-endorsed deal with entitlement cuts. “Labor fought hard for this president, they were doing everything they could to help organize, to get the early vote out. This is one of their big issues. The president is going to turn his back on labor? I don’t think so.”

Asked how Democrats would respond if Obama agreed to raise the Medicare eligibility age from 65 to 67, Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse said bluntly, “Very badly.”

Obama has been willing to dip into entitlements in the past, which makes some liberal Democrats nervous. He agreed tentatively to raising the Medicare age in last summer’s ill-fated debt-ceiling talks with Boehner. And he proposed additional means testing in Medicare in his deficit reduction plan. The idea also made an appearance in last year’s deficit-reduction list between Vice President Joe Biden and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor.

In previous talks, Obama has also floated the idea of changing the method of calculating inflation for government programs, a proposal that Democratic critics fear could slash too deeply into Social Security benefits. As part of this round of talks, Obama has offered up $600 billion in cuts to health-based entitlement programs and non-mandatory programs, a proposal that includes $350 billion from overhauling bulk purchases of prescription drugs as well as Medicare means testing.

But, he’s demanding $1.4 trillion in new taxes, including by raising tax rates on families who earn more than $250,000 annually. Boehner has floated $800 billion in new taxes from closing unspecified loopholes and deductions as well as $1 trillion in cuts, including out of entitlement programs.

Medicare means testing is hardly a new idea, and in fact it’s already happening — under Obamacare and the 2003 law that created the Medicare prescription drug benefit. The idea is to expand it — and Republicans are increasingly pushing for it as a way to counter Democratic attacks that they’re only worried about protecting the rich.

When will the media stand up to the corruption in DC? WE, the people need an honest government and what we have is far from honest! NO budgets in 4 years ia a crime - WHERE is our MEDIA? HOlding hands with the CRIMINALS

When will the media stand up to the corruption in DC? WE, the people need an honest government and what we have is far from honest! NO budgets in 4 years ia a crime - WHERE is our MEDIA? HOlding hands with the CRIMINALS

As a Small Government Republican Medicare beneficiary who's benefited from the free gift of Part D, cheap Medicare premiums, tax credits on home mortgages and coverage of primary care services that I should be paying for out of pocket, here's the deal I would like to see.

1. Make Medicare and Medicaid catastrophic programs only. Drop all the wellness and primary care nonsense that enriches providers and often hurts patients with false positives and harmful procedures.

2. Take all Congressionally imposed mandated benefits out of M/M.

3. Take all payments for teaching and medical research out of M/M. Fund them in separate bills and programs.

8. Make Medicare Advantage enrollees pay the full premiums for the expanded coverage.

9. Use money saved by eliminating coverage of provider-enriching preventive and wellness services to cover long-term care expenses that become catastrophically expensive as a percentage of the beneficiary's wealth, including the value of a a home or other investments. If someone is worth, say, $5 million, and long-term care costs, say, $80,000 to $100,000 a year, let that person pay for that care. If the person is worth $500,000 or less, Medicare could pay. That's the Moocher Nation way, of course.

10. Eliminate the death tax. Keep taxes on capital gains and dividends at 15%. No tax increases on the rich unless everyone gets income tax increases. Shrink the number of people who don't pay income taxes, get food stamps and are fraudulently filing disability claims.

11. Keep SS/Medicare enrollments at current ages. Change CPI calculations to reflect real inflation, which is a lot higher than the CPI shows today.

" House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday that Democrats have already “addressed the issue of entitlements.”

“We already took over $700 billion in savings in Medicare, pumped it right back into Medicare to lengthen its strength for at least a decade as well as increasing benefits now,” she said."

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) totally disagrees with her above statement. In the Congressional Budget Office letter to House Speaker John Boehner dated Jul 24, 2012 the CBO stated that $711 billion dollars were taken out of Medicare, Medicaid, and other program in order to fund Obamacare. Please read page 13. The full letter may be found at the following web address:

As mentioned in the letter, “the ACA made numerous changes to payment rates”. The Liberal argument is that they will extend the life of Medicare by cutting almost three quarters of a trillion dollars in Medicare funding. The funds cut from Medicare are transferred to Obamacare. A three quarter of a trillion dollar cut will most certainly extend the life of the Medicare Program since the severe cut in funding to Medicare Providers will result in a large number of Medicare Providers refusing to provide medical service to seniors on Medicare. The bottom line is that the seniors, who have paid Medicare (FICA) taxes for an average of 45 years may have to go to an emergency room for care since they may not be able to find a provider that will take Medicare.

For some Americans, it's critically important that we spend more of our tax dollars to enhance and expand our ability to kill unruly foreigners to save American lives, and likewise critically important that we cut spending on directly saving American lives through Medicare.

WHAT DO WE (THE COUNTRY)....WANT IS .....OUR DEFICIT AND DEBT ADDRESSED (WHILE PROTECTING OUR ECONOMIC RECOVERY).....BY CONNECTING THE TAX INCREASES AND MEANS TESTING...... (TO REDUCE MEDICARE COST).....THE DEMOCRATIC POSITION....ON SOCIAL SECURITY....IS CORRECT AND SHOULD NOT BE INCLUDED IN THE NEGOTIATIONS....WHY?.....THEY PAY LESS THAN THEY TAKE IN......WHAT ABOUT...OUR MILITARY SPENDING....(AND NOT ANY ATTACK WHAT SO EVER ON THE PEOPLE SERVING).....BUT IT'S GONE UP.....AND BY......HOW MUCH.....A WHOLE LOT....... EVEN.....AFTER THE COLD WAR ENDED.......YES....WE HAVE BECOME THE WORLD'S POLICEMAN.....(IT MIGHT BE NEEDED).....BUT....IT IS GOVERNEMENT SPENDING.....AND AS....OTHER AREAS OF SPENDING....(SAY THE FRAUD IN MEDICARE) ....COULDN'T WE SPEND OUR MONEY ........ A LITTLE MORE WISELY.....AND HONESTLY.......WE THE PEOPLE WANT......YOU....WHO ARE IN OFFICE....TO FIX THINGS.....AND GET THE......POLITICAL CLINGONS......( WE ALL KNOW WHO THEY ARE)......OUT OF THE ADULT NEGOTIATION ROOM......THANK YOU....

Split? Ha! We're heard that con before haven't we. All Reid has to do is change the language like he did with Obamacare and there won't be any splits once sweetheart deals are made again behind closed doors. We're seen this before and we know how it's going to end. There are no splits. It's a con. Reid dictates to his Democrats period. Split means individual thinking and their aren't any Democrat individuals in the Senate. They all belong to the collective and Reid allows them to rant and when he thinks there has been enough ranting he shuts them all up. We're going to hear the language has been changed and all Democrats are on board. The socialist MSM knows this and their misleading everyone by acting like Democrats in the Senate are split which they aren't.

The US debt problem isn't from entitlement spending. The debt problem has resulted from the US fighting two wars over the last decade without a war time tax rate. The notion that you can fight wars without raising taxes is the root cause of our debt problems. Asking seniors, veterans and the poor to pay for our middle east excursions - after the fact - via entitlement and other cuts is both unfair and bad policy. We need to start collecting the taxes that should have been collected now to properly fund those wars. I am certain that the very wealthy in this nation can shoulder an after the fact tax a lot easier than now reducing benefits most Americans will rely on at some point in their lives.

Pelosi: "“We already took over $700 billion in savings in Medicare, pumped it right back into Medicare to lengthen its strength for at least a decade as well as increasing benefits now,” she said."

MARXIST DEMOCRATS ARE ECONOMIC IDIOTS!!!!!

X - $700B + $700B = X

If the sum total of the actions are to again have X -- WHERE ARE THE SAVINGS?????

What Pelosi is talking about is that they did an ACCOUNTING trick so that the money is taken directly out of the General Fund instead of having to be taken out of the General Fund via redeeming Treasury bonds. We still spend exactly the same with the exact same result on our national debt and deficit!

All this means is what we knew in the first place -- AT SOME POINT THE MARXIST DEMOCRATS WANT MEDICARE FUNDED DIRECTLY OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND!!!

The Marxist Democrats simply do not care that they are spending the country into bankruptcy.

" House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday that Democrats have already “addressed the issue of entitlements.”

“We already took over $700 billion in savings in Medicare, pumped it right back into Medicare to lengthen its strength for at least a decade as well as increasing benefits now,” she said."

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) totally disagrees with her above statement. In the Congressional Budget Office letter to House Speaker John Boehner dated Jul 24, 2012 the CBO stated that $711 billion dollars were taken out of Medicare, Medicaid, and other program in order to fund Obamacare. Please read page 13. The full letter may be found at the following web address:

As mentioned in the letter, “the ACA made numerous changes to payment rates”. The Liberal argument is that they will extend the life of Medicare by cutting almost three quarters of a trillion dollars in Medicare funding. The funds cut from Medicare are transferred to Obamacare. A three quarter of a trillion dollar cut will most certainly extend the life of the Medicare Program since the severe cut in funding to Medicare Providers will result in a large number of Medicare Providers refusing to provide medical service to seniors on Medicare. The bottom line is that the seniors, who have paid Medicare (FICA) taxes for an average of 45 years may have to go to an emergency room for care since they may not be able to find a provider that will take Medicare.

it is through obamacare that medicare solvency is extended as well senior benefits expanded as pelosi stated. on July 24th, 2012 CBO also sent this letter with tables to speaker john boehner detailing this and the budgetary impact of repealing obamacare which would significantly increase the federal debt and reduce medicare solvency. http://www.cbo.gov/sites/defau...

lets be real here; republicans will never find sufficient any medicare or SSI cuts/reforms that leave these programs intact as they were intended. they've had a longstanding belief they should be privatized and that hasn't changed nor will it anytime soon.

db: "lets be real here; republicans will never find sufficient any medicare or SSI cuts/reforms that leave these programs intact as they were intended. they've had a longstanding belief they should be privatized and that hasn't changed nor will it anytime soon."

Let's be real here.

Medicare is financially BANKRUPT. It no longer takes in enough to cover its payouts.

Something *WILL* be done about.

What the Marxist Democrats want done is a 25% decrease in Medicare benefits when it runs out of Treasury IOU's in about eight years.

Marxist Democrats are the most heartless and power-hungry individuals on the face of the earth.

donald johnson: "9. Use money saved by eliminating coverage of provider-enriching preventive and wellness services to cover long-term care expenses that become catastrophically expensive as a percentage of the beneficiary's wealth, including the value of a a home or other investments. If someone is worth, say, $5 million, and long-term care costs, say, $80,000 to $100,000 a year, let that person pay for that care. If the person is worth $500,000 or less, Medicare could pay. That's the Moocher Nation way, of course."

Your proposal is well-thought out. Why can't our elected officials come up with something like this??

I would only add to your #9 this change.

Expand the HSA program to make it into a *real* savings program. Then work out some formula where using the HSA funds to provide for long-term care lowers your Medicare premium in some manner.

Means testing makes sense. I do not agree with raising the Medicare age - people who break a sweat to earn a living are tired by 65. Raising the age for someone like Romney - who probably never broke a sweat in his life - is fine, but he doesn't need it anyway - for someone on their feet all day, 65 is a good age to retire.

Social Security is fine - all that is needed to keep it fine is to increase the salary cap for contributions - the same as "saint" Reagan did in an earlier "crisis".